Just because I haven’t posted anything for a while doesn’t mean that I have been idle on the creative front. Yes I know I was intending to post daily over the school holidays but what with noisy builder’s electric saws whining away and then the bashing of hammers as they replace the cladding part of my house, and the wonderful distraction of my two grandchildren, well, it just didn’t happen and what is more, I have NOT been beating myself up over it. But since returning to work . . . I have been playing as part of my work.
It’s been rather more than just doodling in meetings (it helps me focus) because I’m working with a wonderful teacher in a class of 12 and 13 year olds creating individual journals about their developing personal identity. The class teacher is working on an inquiry about careers based on their strengths and skills and I am augmenting that focus by having them uncover at their personal qualities and eventually, setting some goals.
The planning incorporates several areas of the curriculum: the Arts, PE & Health and Literacy. I am excited beyond measure! One of the resources I am using is Violette Clark’s Teen Dream Journal DVD and her book Journal Bliss . . . they’re so user-friendly for teachers!
This afternoon I played around with three very simple versions of the same page, complete on the left and incomplete on the right so the students can see how they are developed. I’ve used just basic script, circles and lines. I kept to the KISS principle . . . Keep It Simple Sweetheart! The letters for the heading for the first spread are cut out of squares and rectangles of magazine pages . . . a technique I will show them tomorrow. The heading on the second spread, in Big Fat Letters, was demonstrated last week.
I wanted to show the students that the addition of circles and dots to their writing (on the left) makes a big difference to the overall appearance of the text.
This time I want to introduce the students to ‘the piano test’ which I first used in a class about two years ago. We were working on some visual presentations and to have the students critique their own work I had them prop it up on a piano and take four big steps back to view it. This page lacks definition and I’m hoping that is what the students will tell me.
Again I wanted to show the effect of using simple shapes, lines and dots, and the power of a border . . . this one is just a wiggly line. I also left my pencil markings in the circles so that the students can see that just a little planning is helpful!
Any feedback is welcome as eventually, I’m hoping to come up with a resource for teachers of any skill level on art.
late start studio 